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“I know you do.” The mattress concaves as he scoots closer to me. “I just want to make sure you don’t experience any more of those dangers. Which is why I’m glad you decided to come here.”
I open my eyes and quirk a brow. “Decided? Because, I think you may have made that decision, even before you brought me here. At least, that’s what it sounded like last night when you were telling Jules that you knew I was a paranormal since the day you met me.”
His cheeks puff as he blows out a breath. “I’m going to tell you as much as I can, but there are some things I can’t tell you, because it’s not my place.”
“Then whose place is it?”
“Your pack’s.” He gives a wavering pause. “Jules’.”
My heart flutters at the mention of his name, but I tell it to shut the fuck up. We are not going there. We can’t. At least my body and mind can’t.
“Why? Because he’s the prince?”
“That and something else.”
“You’re being vague.”
“That’s because this is part of the stuff that’s not my place to tell you.”
“Why isn’t it your place?” I ask. “I’m closer to you than anyone else here.”
“I know that. But you must understand that us paranormals live by our traditions and rules. And this stuff that I’m not telling you is heavily linked to werewolves’ tradition, and since I’m not a werewolf, it’s not my place to tell you.”
I sigh. “Fine. What can you tell me?”
He thrums his fingers against the mattress. “When I first met you, I knew right away that you weren’t human. The first giveaway was that you should’ve died from those injuries.” He lightly brushes his fingers across my waist. “But it wasn’t just that. It was how drawn I felt to you. It’s the same way with other paranormals. The few we crossed paths with noticed you, too, yet any human you were around either feared you or despised you. I think it’s because they sensed you weren’t one of them.”
“I never noticed any paranormals noticing me in the Common Realm.”
“That’s because you’re oblivious,” he teases then sighs. “You were also going through a lot and didn’t notice much of anything. You were so afraid of everyone that you rarely let anyone get close to you.” He traces the angles of my star birthmark. “Also, this was sort of a dead giveaway of what you really are.”
I touch my finger to the mark on my temple. “How?”
He gives me a look. “Lake, you have a star marking on the side of your temple. That screams magic, princess. Particularly, Midnight Realm magic.”
“So, you knew I was from your realm the entire time you knew me?” I try to battle down my anger, but a few sparks brink to the surface.
Guilt masks his expression as he nods. “I also guessed you were a werewolf.”
“How? Because Jules, Shade, and Rune didn’t seem to figure it out very quickly.”
His gaze strays pressingly to my birthmark. “I knew because that mark on your head is the mark of a werewolf.”
“So, every wolf has a star on them?”
“No, some have moons. Some have thorns. There’s a lot of different marks, depending on your pack.”
“So then, how come you didn’t know who my pack was?”
“Because I don’t know what mark belongs to what pack.” He shrugs, sitting back and resting his arms on his knees. “It’s not like I go around looking at werewolves’ marks. They’re very touchy about their marks.”
“Why’d you hide mine when we first met Jules, Rune, and Shade, then? Why not keep it on display so they would know what I am?”
“Because I wanted to ease you into the situation. I knew the moment they saw the mark, they’d start treating you like a wolf, and I didn’t want you to freak out. Little did I know you were a lost princess who has an alterum dimidium animae to a prince.Theprince. The next in line for king.”
And there’s that word again. “I want to ask what exactly that—having alterum dimidium animae—means, but I’m guessing that plays into the tradition category.”
“It does. It’s actually one of the most important and most ancient werewolf traditions, right underneath the crowning selection.”
